Boruto: Sacrifices

Chapter 2. The Aftermath

"The sudden and violent attack on the Konoha orphanage left citizens shocked and in fear as the threat of a former enemy lurks over Konoha. While there is no confirmation that the incident is indeed linked to Orochimaru, one of the two legendary sannins still alive, the Hokage office searches for every possible clue. Thirty of the kids who are..."

That was when Mitsuki decided that he didn't want to listen to more of it and turned off the television.

The sun was barely up and the Konohamaru platoon was supposed to meet later for an easy mission and a training, but its youngest member had not slept very well to greet the new day. The days leading to the new moon had always been hard for him, and this cycle has been no exception, only topped with the recent incident.

Was it really his father?

Not much has been publicized yet about last night, and although Mitsuki didn't really believe his father was in any way involved, he found himself wondering why the sannin had been the first person to come to mind. It wasn't really a matter of trust, because he refused to believe Orochimaru could act on impulse and without a good reason. It was a matter of curiosity.

He proceeded to the kitchen to take a pill for his increasing headache when he heard his phone chime. He picked it up to see a text message from his best friend.

"Wanna catch up with us for a late b-fast? Sensei is gonna meet us there later."

He thought about it for a moment, then typed. "Sure."

Maybe a little walk could do good to clear up his head a little.

...

It was a nice day outside, neither too cold nor extremely hot.

They were to meet in a cafe they had frequented over the past year, when they kind of got bored of the numerous fast-food restaurants around the town. It was small, cozy and didn't have many customers around this hour, so it had, in one way or another, became their safe harbor.

"We were beginning to wonder when you would be coming," Sarada said good-naturedly when she saw Mitsuki approaching. "Boruto was about to come and get you."

"I walked around for a while," Mitsuki said simply.

Boruto and Sarada looked at each other for the shortest of seconds.

"Is everything alright?" the girl asked finally.

"Yup. So when will we get going?" said the blue-haired boy, sitting down on the chair next to Boruto and grabbing the toast that was among the many things his friends ordered.

"Konohamaru sensei said he will be here in about half an hour." Boruto explained, also digging in. "Seems like we have a simple mission at hand, and then a training afterward."

"Do you know what kind of mission?"

"Well, we thought it might have something to do with... the orphanage," Sarada said and Mitsuki actually stopped for a second before he moved on to take a bite from the toast. "Apparently, there are a lot of things that need to be done, and most genin teams are already assigned."

When his friend kept his silence, Boruto frowned a little. "Dude... you sure you don't want to talk?"

The blue-haired boy looked at him with raised eyebrows. "And you become the team therapist, when...?"

"You know what I mean! If you..."

"Boruto." Mitsuki cut in, giving him a level look. "I'm not gonna break down or anything, as you well know, so let's just eat in peace, okay?"